Arete Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) by 41.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,372 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 17,644 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,292,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. HBC Financial Services PLLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Founders Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 340.7% during the second quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 736 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 569 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 273.5% during the third quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 1,016 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 744 shares during the last quarter. 60.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 13th. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $51.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 24th. Credit Suisse Group dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications to $43.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 27th. Tigress Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $68.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Friday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $35.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.14 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 24.60%. The company's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 10th will be issued a $0.6525 dividend. This represents a $2.61 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 9th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.58%.

About Verizon Communications

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Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, offers communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. Its Consumer segment provides postpaid and prepaid service plans; internet access on notebook computers and tablets; wireless equipment, including smartphones and other handsets; and wireless-enabled internet devices, such as tablets, and other wireless-enabled connected devices comprising smart watches.

Further Reading

• Get a free copy of the StockNews.com research report on Verizon Communications (VZ)
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